Keith “One Time” Thurman a rising star, will take on Julio Diaz at StubHub Center

Keith “One Time” Thurman is not yet a full-fledged champion, but the 25-year-old knockout artist from Florida does hold an interim welterweight title and he certainly appears to have the goods to compete with the best in the division.

Julio Diaz, 34, of Coachella is a former lightweight champion whose best days might be behind him. That means when he challenges Thurman tonight for his belt, he’ll have a chance to show that is not the case.

A hard-hitting rising star against a tough Mexican fighter. That’s what’s on tap when the two square off in the main event at StubHub Center in a Golden Boy Promotions card (on Showtime).

Thurman has compiled a sterling record of 22-0 with 20 knockouts — 10 in the first round. He lives up to his moniker, and takes great pride in it.

“My motto is KOs for life,” Thurman said Thursday. “I’m going to do it again.”

Thurman is confident, to be sure. But not overly. He knows that he has to keep his head screwed on tightly if he’s going to realize his dreams.

“Winning on Saturday is obviously very important,” he said. “Others in my division are already name-fighters, but I’m just starting to build mine. I’m still coming up in the world of boxing. So this is a chance for me to show that I’m not like all others.”

One of the “others” is Shawn Porter, who currently is taking the boxing world by storm. Just this past Saturday he defended his welterweight title by stopping former two-division champion Paulie Malignaggi in the fourth round in Washington D.C. It’s easy to say it was no big deal because Malignaggi can’t crack an egg, but he is a very clever boxer who has been in with some of the best.

Porter has been asking for Thurman, and Thurman would love to oblige since there is no interim tag of front of Porter’s title. A loss to Diaz would foil that plan, however.

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“I’ve known Shawn Porter and his dad for years,” Thurman said. “I know they’re calling me out. When the time is right, we’ll fight.”

Not so fast. Diaz (40-9-1, 25 KOs) is here to be recognized, too. When he lost back-to-back fights against Rolando Reyes and Victor Manuel Cayo in 2009, his career was pretty much given up for dead.

But he won two in a row, then was stopped in the third round by Kendall Holt. Again, people said it was time for him to go. He rebounded once more, winning two straight before fighting to a draw with the aforementioned Porter. Diaz then lost a close fight to former champion Amir Khan before losing unanimously to Porter in a rematch.

If anything, he gained respect and gave himself another chance to do something big. Here it is.

“They said I was an old man three years ago and said it was time for me to retire,” Diaz said. “Actually, I’ve been hearing the same thing for 15 years. They said it when I lost my title. They said it when I got knocked out. But I’m still here and Saturday I’m getting a shot at another world title.”

Diaz suggests naysayers look at his work against Porter.

“I definitely feel I beat Porter the first time (in December 2012), but they called it a draw,” he said. “In the second fight, he outpointed me, but in both fights I know I hurt him, and I dropped him. People forget that, and look at Porter now. His status has really grown.”

This could be another knockout for Thurman. But with Diaz, one never knows. Thurman isn’t taking him for granted.

“I expect Diaz to fight his heart out,” Thurman said. “He says he plans to knock me out. I don’t know if that’s fight hype or his strategy, but I’ll be ready.”

John Molina title shot?

John Molina of Covina worked hard to get a shot at a lightweight title. When he got it, he was stopped in the first round by champion Antonio DeMarco of Tijuana in September 2012. Molina will have a chance to put himself in the picture for a shot at a super lightweight title when he takes on former interim champion Lucas Matthysse of Argentina on the Thurman-Diaz undercard.

“The bad loss to DeMarco was a few years ago, but I needed that to become the pro I am today,” said Molina, who is 27-3 with 22 knockouts. “I now have the experience of fighting on a big stage that I didn’t then.”

Molina, 31, said he never stopped believing in himself, the loss to DeMarco notwithstanding.

“The odds are against me each time out, but I have a fighting spirit and I have a desire to win against all odds that others don’t. There was never any self-doubt.”

Winning this fight is not an easy task as Matthysse can be a real monster in the ring, as his record of 34-3 with 32 knockouts attests. Molina welcomes the challenge.

“Against the kind of fighter Matthysse is, I have the opportunity to show what I’m really about,” said Molina, a Charter Oak High graduate.

Matthysse is also highly motivated, as he lost his most recent fight to world champion Danny Garcia in September.

“I don’t believe the defeat derailed me too badly,” said Matthysse, 31. “But I need to win against Molina to show that I am back.”

Etc.

Also underneath Thurman-Diaz, Omar Figueroa (22-0-1, 17 KOs) of Weslaco, Texas, will defend his lightweight title against Jerry Belmontes (19-3, 5 KOs) of Corpus Christi, Texas. ... Josesito Lopez (32-6, 19 KOs) of Riverside stopped Aron Martinez (19-3-1) of East Los Angeles in the fifth round of their welterweight main event Thursday at Agua Caliente Casino in Rancho Mirage. ... Wladimir Klitschko (61-3, 51 KOs) of Ukraine will defend his three heavyweight titles against Alex Leapai (30-4 -3, 24 KOs) of Australia on Saturday from Germany (on ESPN). ... Television producer Michael King’s promotional debut at the Barker Hangar in Santa Monica on April 16 was a success. “This was a great night of boxing and entertainment,” said King, a boxing fanatic. “Boxing at Barker delivered and the concept proves the sport of boxing can evolve.” There were five bouts. The main event featured heavyweights Alex Flores of Los Angeles and St. Louis’ Charles Martin (16-0-1, 14 KOs), who knocked out Flores (14-1) at 1:14 of the fourth round.